Brief:
Estes Blue Bird Zero upscale; uses 24-inch parachute recovery..

Construction:
T' Estes Blue Bird Zero was me first model rocket. Begad! Naturally, when I became a BAR, ya bilge rat, I wanted t' clone one. Blimey! Aye aye! A quick check o' Jim Z’s site revealed that thar were no plans available. Nay one t' be deterred, shiver me timbers, I searched on. Begad! T' make a long story short, shiver me timbers, I found someone through t' internet who would provide me t' plans and fin tracings. Ahoy! I decided t' do a slight upscale t' BT-60 from t' stock BT-55 size mostly because that is what I had on hand at t' time. I needed 44.5-inches o' tubin' for correct scale. I installed a 24mm motor mount and glued both sets o' fins t' t' lower body tube. Ya scallywag! Avast! I then proceeded t' join t' body tubes. Arrr! Ahoy! Everythin' was glued with 30min epoxy. (author’s note: BBZ plans are available on Jim Z’s website, me hearties, thanks in part t' yours truly.)

When all t' gluin' be complete, me bucko, t' entire rocket was skim-coated with thinned Fill ’N’ Finish and sanded smooth. Aye aye! Blimey! I then proceeded t' prime, ya bilge rat, and paint t' blue section o' t' rocket first. Avast, me proud beauty! Ahoy! Blimey! After drying, matey, I masked t' blue section and painted t' white section, arrr, then clear coat over t' entire rocket. Avast, me proud beauty! Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! T' decals for this rocket were a challenge. Begad! I ended up drawin' them myself and printin' them on self-adhesive stock. Aye aye! Blimey! T' decals turned out good, and t' finished product looked great!

Construction Rating: 5 out o' 5

Flight:
I prepped t' BBZ for her maiden flight on a D12-3. I installed t' wadding, motor, parachute, me hearties, and set her on t' pad. Well, blow me down! Aye aye! This rocket gives a nice, semi-slow, smokey, takeoff. She went up straight as an arrow — a very stable rocket.. Ahoy! Ejection be near apogee, and it recovered with no damage. Blimey! Arrr! After a perfect third flight, it landed on t' neighbors’ roof and slid about halfway down t' roof t' t' gutter. Ya scallywag! T' BBZ was OK, except for some bilge-suckin' shingle rash on t' edges o' t' fins. Begad! Flight number six would prove t' be fatal. Ahoy! Blimey! After a perfect boost and ejection, t' chute did nay open due t' bein' tangled on t' shroud lines. Avast, me proud beauty! It crashed on t' asphalt HARD — rest in pieces.

Flight Rating: 5 out o' 5

Summary:
I have t' give both construction and flight five out o' five. Begad! Begad! Construction was fairly easy, and t' rocket flies very well.